John Abraham is official Aprilia India ambassador now.
17 Apr 2024 | 4332 Views | By Dinshaw Magol, Autocar India
After an exceedingly long wait, Aprilia has launched the Tuareg 660 in India, with prices ranging between Rs 18.85 lakh-19.16 lakh (ex-showroom, India). Aprilia has also updated the prices for its flagship – the RSV4 Factory – and the 660 twins.
The Tuareg 660 ...
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After an exceedingly long wait, Aprilia has launched the Tuareg 660 in India, with prices ranging between Rs 18.85 lakh-19.16 lakh (ex-showroom, India). Aprilia has also updated the prices for its flagship – the RSV4 Factory – and the 660 twins.
The Tuareg 660 is powered by the same liquid-cooled, 659cc, 270-crank parallel-twin as the RS and Tuono 660, but in this configuration, it is rated for 80hp at 9,250rpm and 70Nm at 6,500rpm. With its 18-litre tank fully brimmed, the Tuareg tips the scales at 204kg, which is quite light for a twin-cylinder ADV motorcycle. However, with a seat height that stands at 860mm, it will be a machine that shorter riders could struggle to get along with.
The tubular steel frame underpinning Aprilia’s middleweight ADV uses the engine as a stressed member (just like its 660 siblings) and is suspended by a USD fork and monoshock, both fully adjustable and supplied by KYB. With 240mm of wheel travel available at both ends, the Tuareg should make for a capable tool to venture off the beaten path.
Braking duties are handled by twin 300mm disc brakes clamped down upon by axial Brembo calipers and a single 260mm rear disc mated to a single-piston caliper. As is typical of an off road-biased ADV, the Tuareg has a 21/18-inch wire-spoked wheel setup, and it runs on tubeless Pirelli Scorpion Rally STR tyres sized 90/90-21 (front) and 150/70-R18 (rear).
As is typical with all Aprilia bikes, a comprehensive raft of electronic rider aids are on offer here. These include multiple levels of traction control, engine braking, cruise control, four riding modes (two preset and two customisable) and switchable dual-channel ABS.
Owing to it coming to India via the CBU route, the Aprilia Tuareg 660’s price tag is quite hard to digest. The Atreides Black and Canyon Sand colourways cost Rs 18.85 lakh, while the Dakar Podium livery costs a cool Rs 19.16 lakh.
While the Tuareg is new for India, these other models have been on sale for some time now. For 2024, the Tuono 660 is priced at Rs 17.44 lakh and is available in two colours – Torque Red or Rush Grey.
The RS 660 is available in three colours – Racing Black, Acid Gold or Tribute – and costs Rs 17.74 lakh. The range-topping RSV4 Factory is priced at Rs 31.26 lakh and is available only in one paint scheme – Utra Gold. The 660 twins have become roughly Rs 4 lakh more expensive than they were before, while the RSV4 Factory costs nearly Rs 6 lakh more than it did previously.
All these bikes are imported straight from Noale, Italy, and those interested will have to pay 50 percent of the asking price as a booking deposit. We’re told that the waiting period is roughly three months, although it’s very likely that it could extend more than that. As has been the case with Aprilia’s big bike portfolio in India, a scanty dealer network and the sky-high asking price will relegate them to a very small niche of discerning customers.
Piaggio India has also appointed John Abraham as the official brand ambassador for Aprilia in India. He has been riding the RS 457 for the past month, claims Diego Graffi, chairman & MD Piaggio India, and has been quite taken by the little made-in-India Aprilia. The 'Dhoom' star has also booked a RSV4 1100 Factory and plans to ride it as often as he can.